Catcher in the Rye: Nobody Cou
"If you really want to hear about it," The Catcher in the Rye would be quite different in its message if told from a point of view other than Holden Caulfield. Holden's questionable instability/personality would not be fully addressed, the book would lose much of its bulk, and it would end up having a totally different story line. Narrator, Holden, exposes himself - allowing the reader to see precisely what kind of guy he is. Although the question of his normality is often argued, the train of consciousness narrative, which J. D. Salinger uses in writing this book, creates a terrifyingly familiar personality to which the reader can relate. Holden is in everyone. To quote Mark Phillips in his essay, "Holden Caulfield Revisited," "Holden Caulfield
If The Catcher in the Rye were denied Holden's narration, it would be a much slimmer novel. Nobody else in the story appears to be as random; the sporadic flashbacks/explanations would be done away with - no unexplained irrelevant stories of roomates who envied his fountain pen, or the girl to whom he almost "gave the time." Moreover, phrases such as "that kills me" and "goddam" spew forth from Holden's storyteller lips. One wonders how many pages of the book could be done away with if these (and other) repeated "Holden-isms" were cut out. Consequently, how much humor would be lost if this was done? However interesting it may be, The Catcher in the Rye could not be told from any other characters' point of view and remain The Catcher in the Rye
Some common words found in the essay are:
Rye Holden's, Catcher Rye, Narrator Holden, Sally Holden's, Holden Caulfield, Caulfield Holden's, Furthermore Holden, catcher rye, holden caulfield, Mark Phillips, totally story, ,
Approximate Word count = 509
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)
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